During my long wait for my glider to arrive from Niviuk, a friend of mine told me about a fellow pilots (James Dell) experience with a demo Hook2. Whilst he was flying he noticed that the knotted tape used to affix the brake line to the wing tip had pulled through the 'D' ring and had become snagged and he was unable to release it. This happened to him once on both sides and he decided that due to the turbulent conditions it was unsafe and was forced to land.
Well my first experience of the hook went a little like this.
The wind came round in the early afternoon from Easterly to a very nice and smooth S to SW and I laid out my Hook2 on launch. I noticed that as soon as I left it alone to pick up my helmet, harness etc. it wanted to fly and caught every slight breath of breeze which pulled it around so I elected to bunch it until I was all ready and clipped in. I noticed that the magnets on the risers and breaks were almost too efficient, hoovering up iron filings from the ground and sticking to the other magnets. This really wasn't a drama but was more of an annoyance as I familiarised myself with the wings layout. At one point two of the magnets stuck together with my glove in between them, very annoying but I think something that I will learn to cope with.
I had decided not to fly with my vario on since I wanted to feel the glider and not rely on the beeps and whistles to find my turn points. Once set up I made my wall which was satisfyingly easy and lifted the wing using all the A's. Unfortunately things happened a little quickly and the wing overshot me, schoolboy error! I sorted it all out and went again, this time catching the wing before it dove and launching very comfortably. I had been flying for about 20 minutes when I noticed that the wing was tucked in on the right hand side and I noticed that just like James' experience the knotted tape on the break line had indeed "hooked" through the 'D'ring and no matter how much I tugged or shook that side of the wing, there just wasn't enough pressure on the wing to pull the line free. After faffing around for a few minutes I decided it was far safer just to leave it alone and get on with flying. I felt no ill effects from the snag so bore it in mind and then just ignored it.
The Hook2 fared very well right from the get go. It turns very neatly and quickly with very little pendulum to damp out. I did some very small wing overs and found it was rock steady throughout the maneuver. I never once felt that the wing was about to tuck nor did I feel threatened by the speed of it.
I think that this wing is a superb step up from the Epsilon and a noticeable improvement from the Alpha2 which I was starting to think was boring. anyway here is a photo of my little snag taken just after landing.
1 comment:
Hi Duds, nice flight though, despite the very small annoyance with the line snag. I'm confident that Niviuk will follow up and offer some solution. As for the magnets, they are only a very small irritation and once you get the feel of them, they actually help with the launch method that we use, as they keep the rear risers together and even, which helps with organising everything ready for the off. After a few flights, it all comes together very neatly and quickly, making the rest of the setting up and launching a complete breeze (pun entirely intentional).
Once this little business with the brake line is cleared up, I am sure you're going to completely relax and really love your Hook 2 as much as I have loved my Artik.
Look forward to flying with you again soon!
Post a Comment